Puma Ag Rudolf Dassler Sport Stock Earnings Reports

PUMA reported a solid start to 2026 in a transition year focused on executing a three-year transformation that emphasizes brand acceleration, higher-quality revenue, range simplification and cost discipline. Q1 sales were down 1% currency-adjusted (reported -6.3% FX impact). Wholesale softened (notably in EMEA) while DTC grew (retail +5.7%, e-commerce +0.6%), lifting DTC share to 28.3%. Regionally, APAC and the Americas grew (APAC +8% currency-adjusted; Americas +6% with Latin America strong), whereas EMEA declined ~10%. Footwear was modestly down (-2.3%) but running/training (NITRO) and HYROX performed well. Profitability improved: gross margin expanded ~60 basis points to 47.7%, adjusted EBIT rose to ~EUR 64m and reported EBIT to ~EUR 52m (≈ +20% y/y). Inventories fell ~9% to EUR 1.9bn and working capital improved; free cash flow was negative EUR 201m for Q1 (seasonal) but materially better year-over-year and the company expects positive FCF for full-year 2026. Net debt increased seasonally to EUR 1.3bn but PUMA has ~EUR 1.1bn of total financial headroom and reiterated a priority on deleveraging. Management reconfirmed full-year 2026 guidance: currency-adjusted sales decline in the low-to-mid single digits, stronger H2 vs H1, DTC growth offset by lower wholesale, substantial gross margin improvement, OpEx roughly flat in absolute terms (continued DTC investments), EBIT expected in the range of -EUR 50m to -EUR 150m, and CapEx ≈ EUR 200m focused on digital and DTC. Key operational actions: significant SKU/range reduction (mid-double-digit reduction), 20% reduction in corporate positions vs start of 2025 (with around half already executed), targeted wholesale overstock takebacks (mid-double-digit reductions at selected North American wholesalers), and further leadership changes (CFO transition and new CEO Mark Langer starting next week). Management emphasized sports performance momentum (athlete/team results, product sell-outs) and continued execution of clearance and purchasing reductions to normalize inventory by end-2026.